The Children Ran Away From Me!

On our second day of field testing, the team to which I was assigned rode to a school about 20 minutes away from the city center. The large school compound housed an elementary and a secondary school separated by a wide dusty area used as a playground during recess.  Following protocol we met with the headmaster and his staff and signed the visitors register.  A member of the projects advisory group who had attend the school met us there to help insure that all went well.

The headmaster was asked to assemble all P1 and P4 students in the yard, girls and boys in different lines for each level, so that we could make the random selection for testing.  The headmaster was getting ready to direct us to a classroom where some adjustments with seating had to be made.  In my  not so infinite wisdom, I asked if the library could be used, thinking that it would be a place where testers could work undisturbed in separate areas of what is normally one of the largest rooms in a school. We tested in the library, but it did not provide the atmosphere I expected. But that's not what this particular story is about...

The children lined up near the headmasters office and I was asked to count and choose from the P1 girls line. I always smile and say hello to the children.  This time was no exception. I started counting at the back of the line, but out of the corner of my eye I see a student dash from the line, and run off to an area somewhere behind me. I continued counting...8, 9, 10.  Then three girls bolted from the line, followed by 5 or six more! Thirty students suddenly evaporated into 5! The head master and others shouted to the girls in Hausa.  I laughed and wondered if I had needed to check myself in the mirror before leaving for work that morning.  

The headmaster and representative were embarrassed and very apologetic.  They explained that the girls thought I had come to give them injections! After all I was a stranger--strange English accent, strange clothing, oh my! It took a few minutes to round up and reassure the girls before the testing began.

The disturbing observations was that the children could not read in their native language.  They have memorized alphabets and scripts and can creatively invent a story to tell, but don't know letter sounds and can't read